U.S. Rep. Lt.Col. Adam Kinzinger [IL-16, Energy and Commerce, Foreign Affairs, Jan.6 Attack/Battle Special Committee] is now questioning witnesses ─I grew up on a farm in the midst of Lee County Republicanism, an island of conformity in a sea of corn, in the heart of IL-16 which is since 1960 an island of red in a sea of blue─ and I’ve worked opposing Kinzinger every chance I got for the past 11 years or so since he began his national office candidacies.
Today he, a combat Air Force pilot veteran, in standing firmly for the honesty to be revealed about the Battle of Jan.6 and its overarching ongoing insurrection, has begun his questioning nearly in tears. He asked several hard-core questions of the Congressional Witness panel. ── I gotta say, Thank You Adam for your effort and for your work to serve, to strive, and not to yield in the face of the hate thrown at you by your own family and your GOP Cult. I really do wish you well for your ongoing tenure in the U.S. House of Representatives.
Kinzinger: If in the middle of that melee, you see someone with a gun, would you be able to apprehend them, or was the mission raw survival? ── (witness) Sgt. Gonell: Look at the videos. Common things were used as weapons. Baseball bad. Rebar. Flagpole, including the American flag.
Kinzinger: There's been this idea this was not an armed insurrection. Now we've heard maybe the FBI started this. One that's always held was that this was not an armed insurrection.
Kinsinger: Does this feel like old history to any of the four of you? Time to move on? ── (witnesses) Responses: No sir. Nope. There can be no moving on w/o accountability. How do you move on w/o correcting what happened?
Kinzinger: I was called on as an ANG during the summer. But never once did I believe democracy at risk. There's a difference between a crime and a coup.
Kinzinger: I'm here to investigate January 6 not in spite of my membership in the Republican party. But because of it.
Kinzinger: Many in my party have treated this as another partisan fight. It's a disservice to those who have fought for self-governance.
(witness) Fanone describing why he thought they wanted to kill him: bc he was separated from the other cops, so he no longer posed an impediment. He described being beaten, tortured, at that point.
Kinzinger: I never expected today to be quite as emotional as it has been. You may feel individually a little broken, the impact of that day. But you won. You held. Democracies are not defined by our bad days. [he's crying] They're defined by how we come back from bad days.